Product Description

Create a centralized, always-accessible library of your household's digital music, videos, and photos, and stream your media to UPnP AV-compatible networked entertainment systems without turning on a computer. Plug your Central Axis into your router and it automatically configures to your network. The server quickly loads and organizes your content by file type. It provides at-a-glance storage and backup status, and notifies you via e-mail of system events.

Product Details

• Brand: Seagate
• Model: STM310005CAA00G-RK
• Dimensions: 4.60 pounds
• Hard Disk: 1TB

Features

• Create a centralized, always-accessible library of your household¿s digital music, videos, and photos, and stream your media to UPnP AV-compatible networked entertainment systems without turning on a computer.
• Back up and store up to 1TB of data from networked computers to one central, safe location.
• Plug your Central Axis into your router and it automatically configures to your network.
• Set privacy levels on shared folders for full public access or limited access for an extra measure of security.
• Maxtor SimpleView provides at-a-glance views of back up and storage status for all users.

Amazon.com Product Description
Amazon.com Product Description
Digital videos of your children taking their first steps. The music library you’ve built. The 15 years of personal financial data you’ve compiled. They’re highly valuable—if not irreplaceable—but when stored on your home computers they’re also vulnerable to system failures and viruses, loss and theft.

Create a centralized, always-accessible media library of your household's digital media.

Securely access your stored content.

Easy file sharing both online and within your network.

Automatic data backup, secure web access and sharing, and convenient media access and streaming for your home network
Central Axis storage server delivers a smart, simple way to automatically back up the valuable digital content on all the computers in your home network. Backups happen automatically—a welcome change from the tedious chore of copying your content to discs and thumb drives.

You can securely access and share your content via any web browser, too, so it’s a snap to grab a file from any computer in your home or on the road, and you can easily share content with friends and family everywhere. And for a rich home entertainment experience, you can create a centralized library of household photos, videos, and music that offers anytime access and streaming to your networked TVs, digital music players, and computers.

With automated data protection, you can automatically back up all your network-connected computers to one central, safe location. The Maxtor Central Axis can securely access your stored content and can view images and slideshows from any Internet-connected PC, Mac, or laptop while keeping your firewall intact. Easy file sharing allows you to invite friends and family to view and download select photos and other files via the web. You can even authorize guests to upload their own content. The convenient media access and streaming will let you enjoy the convenience of a centralized, always-accessible library of your household’s digital music, videos, and photos, and stream media from your Central Axis to any networked computer or home entertainment device. (Requires a UPnP AV-compatible player.)

Printer sharing allows you to print from anywhere on your network. Most importantly, Maxtor Central Axis Network Storage Server is easy to use. Plug your Central Axis into your router and it automatically configures to your network. The server quickly loads and organizes your content by file type, provides at-a-glance storage and backup status, and notifies you via email of system events.

The stylish design of this hard drive--only measures 6.8 x 2.5 x 5.9-inches (H x D x W). All that is required is a wired or wireless router with an available 10/100/1000 Ethernet port, an Internet connection (for system updates and web access), and a UPnP AV 1.0 certified Digital Media Adapter if media streaming is desired.

System Requirements - Windows - Pentium III, 500Mhz equivalent processor or higher, Windows Vista or Windows XP, 128MB RAM, and Internet Explorer 6.0 or later, or Firefox 2.X or later for management interface of or web access to Central Access - Macs - Mac OS X 10.4.11 or later, Safari 3.1 or later, and 128 MB of RAM.

Product Highlights

· Automatically back up and protect the content on all your networked home computers · Securely access your files when you're on another computer in your home or on the road
· Securely share files with friends and family around the globe	· Create a centralized, always-accessible library of your household's digital media
· Play videos and music and view photos on digital entertainment devices throughout your home	· Have a network storage solution that is easy to install and use
· Pre-loaded software makes installation quick and easy	· Automated backup scheduling
· 5-year limited warranty

What's in the Box
Maxtor Central Axis storage server, Maxtor installation CD, quick start guide, Maxtor manager software, Ethernet cable, AC power adapter, user guide on CD, and a 5-year limited warranty.

Customer Reviews

Lies about working with Mac
I've just purchased this device to backup my Macbook because of a hard drive crash.

I specifically bought the device because it would work with a Mac and I've met all of their minimum requirements.

So I hook up the thing, and their software doesn't find the drive as it's supposed to. I think, oh that'll be okay, I'll just configure the IP in the device and it'll be good from here on out.

Nope, It *must* run through the detect phase of the program every time. After a lot of trial and error, I got the thing to detect, but not reliably. This means backups don't happen as scheduled. Pretty much making the product worthless to me.

I spoke with their tech. support, when I told them I was using with a mac they actually said "you're killing me"

I recommend against this product if you have a mac.

Terrific Solution--No More Computer Left On For Music Around Home
In short this unit keeps us from running a media server at all times. We get a direct connection via our Gigabit Router and a single Network Attached Storage device (The Central Axis above) that is recognized by all of our PC's, our game systems, and even a pair of our televisions (one Sony and one Samsung with DLNA compatibility.)
Thus the near Terabyte of music that we've recorded from all of our CD's (at 24-bit quality) is available at all times in any room that has a compatible player.
Previously--I had to leave a big old computer and a pair of External SATA drives running with DLNA compatible software (like Twonky Media or Media Monkey or the horrible Windows Media 11 on at all times.) Now I just turn the box off--and this baby handles all the music needs in our home. We are told that you can do the same with Video and documents and images and such--but at this point that would take a second and a third Maxtor Central Axis unit. We'll have to buy them when able. ;-) Great product. Simple set up. Clean use from any household computer. Rip your music from any networked player to it and go. Put the CD's away in storage and you have a winner.

Caution, Can't backup Shared Docs!!!
While this did install quickly as easily, the software won't backup the Windows Shared Documents folder. (Which is an alias to c:\documents and Settings\all users...) In fact it won't backup anything in documents and settings, which is of course where you keep your favorites, and other key bits. (Oh, or program files, although one could argue that's not unreasonable.)

So if you just need shared storage, go for it. But if backing up multiple PCs is the goal, keep looking. I think Amazon will be getting mine back soon.